The Gift
by MaddieIsWhatIAm
Summary: Just because you're gone doesn't mean you can't give. Rated K  because of one cuss word. Oneshot.


**A/N: I was in a Christmas-y, angsty mood. Forgive me.**  
**Disclaimer: Don't make me do this...Idon'townN2N,okay?**

Natalie Goodman sat at the bottom of the Christmas tree. She was just so excited! She was pawing around, counting the number of gifts she had gotten, checking to see if the number has changed since she looked two minutes ago. The number never changed, no matter how many times she checked and rechecked. The number was never important, it was the label. All of them said "Love Dad and Mom" with the last two words written in the same handwriting as "Love Dad."

Natalie knew that her mother didn't really care for her too much. She was always passing her up for something called a "Gabe." Natalie was never sure what a Gabe was, but she knew she shouldn't ask. Whenever it was mentioned, Dad would tense up and talk about magic unicorns, which were SO last year. She never said anything about magic unicorns being old because Natalie figured if he was mentioning the things at all it was probably not good.

"C'mon kiddo. It's time to get on to bed. Santa won't fill up your stocking with presents if you're not sleeping when he comes by. He'll just skip our house and if he does, he'll mark it as 'No kids live here' and then you'll never get presents from him again. You don't want that, do you?" Dan asked, picking his baby girl off the floor while she yawned out, "I'm not tired, Daddy." He just chuckled, laying her down in her bed when they reached her room. He leant over and kissed her forehead while her eyelids fluttered closed.

He missed the days when she was oblivious to problems. The days when she would run around and laugh and not know anything about anything. Except, she was never like that. She never ran around, she hardly laughed, and she was always observant. If only she could've had a childhood like Ga-No. That name is gone in this house. It doesn't exsist anymore. Dan shook his head to clear his thoughts and began to stuff Natalie's stocking.

~Christmas Morning~

"It's so pretty! Tell Santa thank you, okay?" Natalie said, asking her father to thank her hero. He never forgot anybody, no matter what. That's why he was her favorite, because he always remembered her. Dan chuckled. "Sure, Nat. I'll tell him. I think that's all the presents!"

Natalie pouted. "That's not fair. Some boy named Gabe got more presents from me. Who's Gabe and why are his presents underneath my tree?" Dan choked on the water he was drinking. "He's, uh, no one Nat. Santa must've given us Gabe's because he has a similar address, kind of like when we get the Anderson's mail. Hand me all of Gabe's presents and I'll go send them to his house." Natalie obediently grabbed all of the boxes marked "Gabe" to her Dad.

Dan grabbed the pile of gifts shakily and stood. He walked into the kitchen where Diana was sitting, gazing at the snow covered street out the window. "Di," he said through clenched teeth, "What's with the presents for Gabe?" "Ooh, he got them? I hope he really liked them. I spent a lot of time wrapping those." Dan silently shook as Diana rambled on. Finally, he exploded. "Damn it, Diana! Gabriel is dead and you know it! Gabriel Aaron Goodman is no longer with us. You have one child now. ONE! Her name is Natalie. Natalie Jennifer Goodman. Do you evenremember giving birth to her?"

Nat was sitting by the tree during Dan's rampage in the kitchen. She could hear shouting, but it didn't concern her as much as what she saw between the branches of the artificial tree. It seemed to be a small box, about the size of a child's palm, addressed to Natalie. Natalie stuck her arm inbetween the branches of the tree and tried not to pull back as the rough bristles poked her arm. She drew her arm back towards her once her fingers had grasped the cool box. The label said, "To: Natalie." No one had signed the from part of the label. The little girl eagerly opened the small box. Inside it was a charm bracelet with one small charm dangling from the center. It was a small angel boy holding a small cross in one hand and a present in the other. Underneath the bracelet was a small information card.

Written on this card were the words, _Depicted on this charm is the angel Gabriel holding a cross and a present as a symbol of Nathalie, or Christ's birth. Written on the present are the words 'Joie à vous' meaning 'Joy to you' in French. We hope this bracelet brings you joy on Christms day._

Natalie slid the bracelet on her wrist, fumbling to clasp the hook. A pair of hands grabbed the hook and catch and clasped them together. Natalie looked up to thank her dad, only to be startled by a pair of bright blue eyes. The boy with the blue eyes laughed and said, "That's our secret, okay?" He then put a finger to his lips in a "Shh!" gesture. Natalie glanced down at her wrist and then up at the boy to thank him, only to find him gone.

~Mini Epilouge~

To this day, Natalie wears the bracelet proudly displayed on her left wrist. No one seems to see it besides Natalie and her mother. It was as if the simple knowledge of that invisible bracelet brought those two to some sort of understanding. Natalie doesn't say anything about Gabe, ever, but Diana understands. She always knew her son would do something like this for his sister. Diana just didn't expect him to be doing her a favor at the same time.

That was her son.

**A/N: Thoughts please! That little review button is begging me to beg you to click it and type some words. Can't you hear it? Dooo it.**


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